Snark & Sensibility

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PLEASE WELCOME

LINDA SAMMARITAN

TO

FICTION FRIDAY

THE AUTHOR’S STORY

“Thank You for Your Service.”

“Thank you for your service.” Men and women in military uniforms hear those gracious words in today’s society when they walk through airports or enter stores. Veterans of both world wars received the same respect, as did those of the Korean War, but not for the soldiers who served during the Vietnam War. No, they walked through the same airports on their return home, and others in the terminal spat on them.

Not only were the Vietnam vets disrespected, but their families endured the scorn of neighbors. I remember. I was the child of a fighter pilot who spent a year in Vietnam. After the anti-war protesters in my college discovered my identity, I learned to stay under their radar to avoid bullying.

By the time my son joined the Army and deployed to Iraq in 2001, the bubbling pot of hate had been removed from the flames. But my son understood history. As he prepared to return stateside, he asked how people were receiving homeward-bound soldiers. Thankfully, I could assure him our nation appreciated his service. He would not have to endure Vietnam 2.0.

I’m so glad America has grown to love its veterans again. As a nation, we’re often divided, but maybe we can learn to love one another once more, even love those who think differently than we do.

ABOUT THE WORLD WITHOUT SOUND SERIES

My teen fiction trilogy covers the years of the Vietnam War, based on issues my family faced from 1965-1970. Each can be read as a stand-alone, but reading all three gives you a sense of completion. Reaching Into Silence, Book One, and Speaking Through the Silence, Book 3, focus on helping the deaf little sister learn to communicate. She was born during the rubella epidemic, and the disease caused all kinds of harm to unborn babies. Mom had rubella early in her pregnancy. We knew the baby would be born with some kind of disability.

Dancing in the Silence, Book Two, focuses on the family while Dad is in Vietnam. It’s a Carol Award Finalist, and it’s always been my favorite of the three books in the series.

AN EXCERPT FROM DANCING IN THE SILENCE 

While the series is fictional, the excerpt below is close to the truth. I really did experience a similar confrontation as a freshman in college. The following scene takes place as the main character, Debbie, enjoys the football game and can’t wait until next year when she will be in high school.

A group of muddle-heads stood to my left. “Muddle-heads” was my own word for them. They were always talking politics and making no sense. Why they came to the game was beyond me. They hated jocks. They mocked high school traditions like Homecoming and graduation. They didn’t have a good word to say about anyone over the age of thirty.

Artie Williams was their leader. He was a junior, he was big, and he was scary. If he didn’t hate sports so much, he would’ve made a great offensive lineman. Maybe we could’ve won a few games.

 I’d never seen him smile. He ranted on and on about the Black Panthers, like they were going to save the world or something. And he wasn’t even black. Last year, he tried to have a sit-in at school to protest the Vietnam War. Only three muddle-heads joined him, and they all got suspended for a week.

This afternoon, Artie was in the middle of his group, glaring at the crowd, arms folded across his chest. Was he going to stage another sit-in? Would the muddle-heads march across the field with their arms upraised in a Black Power salute? His eyes lit on me. And stayed there.

“You!”

Like Dorothy when the Wizard of Oz commanded her to bring him the witch’s broomstick, I trembled where I stood. If only I could run off the field the same way the Cowardly Lion ran down the castle corridor at the wizard’s roar. But I was stuck in a crowd of people, frozen in place.

“You!” He bellowed again.

Ronni turned at the voice. Other kids looked his way, but his eyes remained on me. Why would he notice me?

“Debbie Hansen, right?” Angry dark eyes bored into mine.

I was hypnotized. Mute. A sacrificial lamb awaiting her doom.

“Right?” He added even more volume to his voice.

I nodded. Stranded. Trapped.

“You got a daddy in the Square Force?”

Ronni stepped closer to me. Other kids stepped away, leaving six feet of open space between me and Artie.

“He’s in ‘Nam, right?” He chuckled. An evil chuckle. “Cat got your tongue, huh? Don’t want to admit your daddy’s a baby-killer, huh?”

He couldn’t talk about my father like that. “No. He’s not.” My voice shook.

But Artie was on a roll. “Kills gooks, doesn’t he? Those people are just gooks to him.”

“He’s not like that.” My voice firmed up, my hands became fists, but what could I do against a guy three times my size?

“Farmers in their fields, mothers in their huts, children in the river. He kills them all.”

 My whole body quaked, but I’d have my say, even if I ended up a bloody pile of bones in the next five minutes. Use your diaphragm, Debbie. Project that voice. “He’s a pilot. He bombs railroads to cut off weapons from the enemy.”

“There’s people on those trains. Innocent people. But to him they’re just gooks.”

“Artie…leave the kid alone.” Someone in the crowd offered a feeble protest.

Artie ignored my timid defender. “Her daddy’s a baby killer. Hear that, y’all?”

Where were the teachers? The principal? The parents who came to the game? On the far side of the field. Adults always drifted toward one goal post while kids congregated around the other.

Someone shoved me aside from behind, then stood directly in front of me like a shield. The back of his head looked familiar.

“You can’t say that about my dad. Take it back.”

Paul!

Another rustle from behind. “Yeah, take it back.” Wade appeared beside his brother.

Artie laughed. “Look at these little guys. Whatcha gonna do, beat me up?”

Paul held up his fists in a boxer’s stance. “Leave my sister alone. And shut up about my dad. You don’t know anything about what he does.”

Artie’s eyes narrowed, and Wade raised his fists to join Paul’s. All the kids near us had gone silent. Some of the guys shuffled closer to us. Maybe my brothers had shamed them into showing a little gumption.

Artie shifted his gaze to the solemn group. Five muddle-heads against fifty high school kids, which included the football team. If he thought about punching out two little boys, the silent, hostile students changed his mind. He shook his head and sneered. “Well, I ain’t no baby-killer.” And he turned and ambled away.

Ronni guided me to the chalked sideline, where I sank onto the grass, unable to stop shaking. The other kids drifted away, a few of them mumbling apologies as if Artie’s behavior was their fault.

Paul and Wade followed me, silent. I would never think of them as pests again.

BUY LINK

Debbie bumps into Artie once again in Book Three, Speaking Through the Silence, but this time she’s strong enough to confront him, and she gains a new, more mature perspective on the issue of war.

ABOUT LINDA SAMMARITAN 

Linda Sammaritan writes realistic fiction. Recently, she has published The Song Awakens, the first of a women’s fiction series in The Cracked Quartet. Her YA trilogy, World Without Sound, based on her own experiences while growing up with her deaf sister in the Vietnam War Era, has earned the status of a Carol Awards finalist (Dancing in the Silence) and a semi-finalist (Reaching Into Silence).

With teaching as a first love, Linda had always figured she’d teach teens and tweens until school authorities presented her with a retirement wheelchair and rolled her out the door. However, God changed those plans when He gave her a growing passion for writing fiction. In May of 2016, she blew goodbye kisses to her students and dedicated her work hours to becoming an author.

A wife, mother of three, and grandmother to eight, Linda regales the youngest grandchildren with “Nona Stories,” tales of her childhood. Maybe one day those stories will be in picture books!

Where Linda can be found on the web:

www.lindasammaritan.com

www.facebook.com/lindasammaritan

www.twitter.com/LindaSammaritan

MY REVIEW *****

Yes, the book features an adorable special needs child, a dad who goes off to war and leaves a frazzled mom of four to parent demanding children, Grandma helps, and two preteen rumbunctious boys vying for dominance to be the dad figure in the family while their father is away. But my heart went out to Debbie. The author has portrayed this young teen to perfection. Not only does she have to deal with the normal problems of early adolescence: wanting to be liked and figuring out her role as the oldest of four. In addition to the frequent moves a military family experiences, Deb worries that her beloved father might die in Vietnam. She has a unique bond with her toddler sister, teaching her to sign, though the going wisdom of the time was to only teach lip reading. I rate this a five-star read due to excellent craftsmanship and pulling of my heartstrings. I highly recommend this read for all ages.